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When you consider the inherent novelty of releasing soundtracks in 2011, in a media world inundated with options and audio alternatives, doubling up on the strategy seems almost surreal. After all, are there really aficionados out their clamoring for both the wordless score and the selection of pop/rock songs that make up the average movie’s mixtape? It’s an intriguing question, one made even more interesting by the selections presented in this fifth week of our continuing Surround Sound overview. Setting a record of sorts, we are going to delve into nine different offerings, three of which represent the very sonic yin and yang we were referencing a moment ago. Clearly, in at least one case, the desire is to tap into a teen marketplace marred by such limited talent chart toppers. But in at least one instance, the combination of composer and contemporary acts works. Elsewhere, we see the same old single disc depictions of the aural emotions behind the movies.

So, in week five, we will look at an (pointless) update of a timeless fairy tale, a legal thriller, a supposed comedy, a crime drama, a sci-fi spectacle, and a super hero spoof. Oddly enough, some of the combos are more winning that the solo shout-outs:

Twenty-eight. That’s how many soundtracks have shuffled through the always open transom of Short Ends and Leader Central in the last couple of months - and they just keep on coming. Last week alone we were sent links to a classic collection involving such known entities as Citizen Kane, Casablanca, Gone with the Wind, and Sunset Boulevard. As usual, the extra workload makes it almost impossible to keep up, especially when dealing with the demands of Award Season and the upcoming Oscars. So like our lifetime, the scores have been piling up, begging us to address them with the usual critical aplomb. In this latest installment our February special (which will now leak over into March), every Wednesday will feature a Special Surround Sound column covering this glut of motion picture music. Hopefully, over the course of the next four (or five, or six) weeks, we’ll be able to access the value in these often overlooked cinematic souvenirs. If this latest batch is any indication, there are quite a few gems to still be unearthed.

In week four, numbers 22 through 28 reveal a true difference in approach and design, from ambient to outright over the top, traditional to the slightly more modern:

Twenty-eight. That’s how many soundtracks have shuffled through the always open transom of Short Ends and Leader Central in the last couple of months. As usual, the extra workload makes it almost impossible to keep up, especially when dealing with the demands of Award Season and the upcoming Oscars. So like our lifetime, the scores have been piling up, begging us to address them with the usual critical aplomb. So, as part of a February special, every Wednesday will feature a Special Surround Sound column covering this glut of motion picture music. Hopefully, over the course of the next four weeks, we’ll be able to access the value in these often overlooked cinematic souvenirs. If the first batch is any indication, there are quite a few gems to be unearthed within this stack.

In week three, numbers 15 through 21 reveal a true divergence in approach and idea, beginning with a direct to DVD title that, while marginal, still offers fine musical accompaniment:

Seven down…21 more to go. That’s right, we started with twenty-eight soundtracks when we began this look at the scores that have shuffled through the always open transom of Short Ends and Leader Central in the last couple of months (with more arriving every day). As usual, the extra workload makes it almost impossible to keep up, especially when dealing with the demands of Award Season and the upcoming Oscars. So like our lifetime, the CDs have been piling up, begging us to address them with the usual critical aplomb. So, as part of a February special, every Wednesday will feature a Special Surround Sound column covering this glut of motion picture music. Hopefully, over the course of the next four weeks, we’ll be able to access the value in these often overlooked cinematic souvenirs. If the second batch is like the first, there are quite a few gems to be unearthed within this stack.

Twenty-eight. That’s how many soundtracks have shuffled through the always open transom of Short Ends and Leader Central in the last couple of months. As usual, the extra workload makes it almost impossible to keep up, especially when dealing with the demands of Award Season and the upcoming Oscars. So like our lifetime, the scores have been piling up, begging us to address them with the usual critical aplomb. So, as part of a February special, every Wednesday will feature a Special Surround Sound column covering this glut of motion picture music. Hopefully, over the course of the next four weeks, we’ll be able to access the value in these often overlooked cinematic souvenirs. If the first batch is any indication, there are quite a few gems to be unearthed within this stack.